


pretty

by thisprentiss



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Bisexual Female Character, F/F, Homophobic Language, Internalized Transphobia, Multi, Trans Female Character, yo fuk me up w trans headcanons there rlly arent enough in the stranger things fandom
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-15
Updated: 2017-01-26
Packaged: 2018-08-22 13:40:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,820
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8287693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thisprentiss/pseuds/thisprentiss
Summary: steve just wants to be called pretty for once, and nancy is the best as always





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> yo honestly?? trans girl steve fuks me up every time like i love her so much  
> pls don't be mean in the comments thank

She's sort of always known.

Not _really,_ but she knew that she loved it when her cousins would dress her up in her aunt's old clothes, parading her around the house proud of their fashion work. She knew she loved looking through magazines at models in middle school, wondering how she would look in clothes she would never be allowed to buy. She knew it always made her smile when waitresses at diners would greet her as 'miss', only to be corrected by her father.

She loved feeling _pretty._

Obviously she didn't _tell_ anyone about it. She wasn't stupid, she knew what people said on the street, she could hear her parents talking in the living room after bed time, saying awful shit about 'men dressing up as women'.

It was when she was getting a snack in eighth grade and she heard her father say, " _Everybody thinks our son's a queer. Says he acts so much like a girl he's probably gay_ ," that she realized it wouldn't be enough just to call herself male.

She'd have to _act_ male too.

When she hit freshman year of high school, she met Tommy and his girlfriend Carol.

They were mean, but she figured that was good. They picked on her and harassed her if she 'acted too queer' and at the time, she thought that was the best thing for her. Thought it would help her develop a more masculine persona.

And she was damn right about that.

By the time they were half way through sophomore year, Steve Harrington was the stud of Hawkins High. Carol and Tommy made sure of that; there was no way they were going to hang out with someone that wasn't at the very top of the social ladder. She joined sports, she styled her hair like all the male celebrities did, she hooked up with girls in the bathroom and skipped class whenever she felt the urge.

Because that's what all the _boys_ did. And she was trying to make herself feel like a _boy._

She wished she could say it got easier.

Of course it got easier to pretend. To grit her teeth and bear it when people called her 'sir'. Easier to fake smiles when she felt like she wanted to cry, easier to put on that male facade in the morning.

But she didn't stop feeling like a girl. Not like she hoped she would. She thought maybe, _just maybe_ she would grow out of it. That it might just be a stupid phase. Every night she went to sleep and crossed her fingers, hoping that somehow, maybe, she would wake up and feel like the boy everyone thinks she is.

And then she met Nancy Wheeler.

Nancy was... how to even _describe_ Nancy. She was perfect in every way. Gorgeous, kind, thoughtful, smart. Carol and Tommy thought it was hilarious, said Steve was 'crushing like a nine year old girl'. And honestly... she was. Even passing Nancy in the hall made her cheeks heat up and her mind start racing. _Funny,_ she couldn't help but think, _guess my dad was right about me being gay after all._

She talked to Nancy for the first time after class on a Tuesday in the fall. Nancy was wearing a peach colored sweater and a pair of brown slacks, books tucked under one arm with the other linked around Barb's. With some magical stroke of luck, a book hit the ground; nothing for class, just something Nancy was reading for fun, and before she could lean down to get it, Steve had slid in and picked it up.

They started talking after that. At first, it wasn't much. Carol and Tommy still laughed at her every time she brought Nancy up in conversation, and continued laughing when she started inviting her to their table at lunch.

The first time they kissed was by Nancy's locker. Quick and awkward and _so_ perfect.

The second time was outside the school by the football field. Nancy's hands were tangled in her hair and Steve could smell her perfume on her shirt for hours afterward.

The third time was in the bathroom at school; they had some conversation about chemistry and decided to meet up and 'study' together. Of course that led into them kissing again.

And then they were in Steve's bed during a party when her parents were gone. Nancy was stripped down to her bra and panties, lying next to Steve as she kissed her softly. "God," she moaned, "God, Steve, you're- this is-"

"Awesome?" Steve asked, smiling against her collarbone before planting another kiss. She felt a hand on her chin and suddenly Nancy was bringing her head up to look her in the eye. It was like she was studying her. _Of course she's studying me. Nancy Wheeler_ loves _to study._ Steve let herself smirk. "Like what you see, Nancy Wheeler?"

"You're real attractive, Steve Harrington. An idiot, but still a really handsome guy," she muttered, and Steve really hoped she didn't notice the way she stiffened. "What? You okay?" _Of course she noticed. Nancy notices everything._

When Steve tried to play it off and go back to kissing her, Nancy pushed a hand in between their faces, forcing her back. "No, seriously. You looked really upset there for a second, are you okay?"

"I'm- yeah, I'm fine," she lied, moving back in for another kiss. Nancy blocked this one too, and sat up. "Nance, can we just- just forget about it. It's nothing."

"Okay, it's clearly not nothing," Nancy said as she looked down at her. Those eyes, _jeez_ , those eyes. Fierce and beautiful and demanding all at once. Steve let out a slight sigh. "Sit up, c'mon, I just want to make sure you're okay."

"Really, Nancy, it's nothing," Steve told her, though she still sat up as she was commanded, "You're making way too big of a deal out of this."

A concerned crease formed between Nancy's eyebrows. "Did I say something wrong?"

"What? N- no! God no, Nance," Steve spluttered, but of course Nancy wasn't buying it. Before she could push anymore, Steve cut her off, "I don't want to talk about it, at least not- It's- I really- it's personal, okay? It's not something I want you to- I can't let you know this. It- it could ruin everything, and I really like you, so- I'm- Just-"

"Hey, hey, calm down," Nancy was sitting up on her knees now to lean forward and grab one of Steve's hands, "You don't have to talk about it if you don't want. But I- I don't know. I won't be weird or anything, you can trust me."

Steve pulled her eyes off of Nancy's and stared at a string on her sheets. She didn't say anything for a while, before closing her eyes and squeezing Nancy's hand. "I just don't want to mess things up for us. You'll think I'm a weirdo," she said quietly. Then there was a hand on her face and Nancy was smiling softly at her.

"Look, I really won't. We both have boundaries, I just- I want to make sure you're okay," Nancy said, "We were having a good time and then you got... I don't know, you just seemed really sad all of a sudden. Did I cross a line or something? You were okay with the whole idea of having sex last night, but-"

"No, no, Nancy, it wasn't that," Steve told her, shaking her head, "I just- it's just this weird... thing. I- It's complicated. _I'm_ complicated. Not in the good way, either. Can you just..."

"Yeah?"

Steve sighed, letting her shoulders drop. "Can you... I don't know. Can you not call me handsome? Please? It's just- I don't know."

Nancy's head tilted to the side ever so slightly, and the wheels in her head were obviously turning. Then, after a long and painstaking moment of silence, she nodded. "Okay," she said; her hand was reaching out and squeezing Steve's once again, "Okay."

Their lips met and the kiss tasted like strawberry chapstick and salt. When they broke apart, they let their foreheads stay together, staring into each other's eyes. "Do you want me to call you pretty?"

_Yes._ Steve didn't want anything in the world more than that. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, trying to calm her thoughts. _What am I even supposed to say? Of course I do. But... is that too far? That'll give something away, won't it?_ But she nodded anyway, giving Nancy another soft kiss. And then, "Nancy?"

"Mm?"

"You've... um. You've heard of..." she pursed her lips and sat back, feeling her heart start pounding. " _Transgender_ people. Right?"

If Steve had been expecting any reaction out of Nancy (which she was, and all of them were negative) she didn't expect her to half bust out laughing. "Forget I said that, I'm sorry, I-"

"No, no, it's okay, I'm not laughing at you!" Nancy said quickly, waving her hands around, "Of course I've heard of transgender people. You know I run the gay straight alliance club, right?" she had a grin on her face. There was a pause, and she must've realized that Steve had no idea what to say, because she leaned forward and pecked her on the cheek. "And I'm bisexual. Just so you know."

"That's-" Steve still felt like she was going to pass out. "That's awesome- you know- because. Um. I'm a girl. Just- uh. Just so you know."

"Awesome," Nancy said, bringing her lips back to Steve's and pushing her down onto the bed, "You know? You're honestly so pretty, Steve Harrington. An idiot, but still pretty."


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i swear i will Never be over this hc i love steph harrington more than i love myself  
> thanks for all the positive reviews on the last chapter, i was super excited that more people than Me liked this hc!! as always, i'd love to hear what ppl think of the extension of the story.  
> this chapter deals more with her actually coming out to people other than nancy (the byers, mike + squad, etc) but i wasn't really In The Mood for writing ppl being transphobic, especially considering the atmosphere of the world atm, so these r all happy snippets!

  _Steph._ Her name was Steph.

It was a really nice name. Close to Steve, she wouldn't have to get used to the change too much if she ever started using it in public, and it felt natural rolling off her tongue.  _Steph Harrington. Stephanie Harrington._ She couldn't help but smile, because  _god_ it felt so  _good_ to have a  _name_ for herself, a name that wasn't forced on her at birth, a name that she got to choose.

And as similar as it was to her birth name, it was still exhilarating to hear Nancy use it when they were alone together.

When she accidentally used it in front of Jonathan Byers, however, was just a little bit more than terrifying.

The three of them were out in the grass near the cafeteria exit during lunch, chatting and eating and generally having a good time, Steph's head in Nancy's lap, Jonathan across from them. He wasn't talking much, and neither was Steph. Really, it was just Nancy.

Something about Eleven.

"It's really kind of fascinating how her telekinetic skills manifest, and how long she can use them for. Like, some smaller tasks wind up being more difficult, but larger tasks that you would expect would take more effort are easy," Nancy ran a hand through her girlfriend's hair, "Like Steph, remember last week when El threw you across the room? Jonathan you should've been there, she hit the wall like a sack of  _bricks!_ "

"You a girl now?" Jonathan asked quietly, and Nancy stopped talking immediately, hand freezing on the side of Steph's head.

"What?" Nancy asked with a nervous glance down at her girlfriend, "Hm?"

Jonathan gestured at Steph, shrugging. "You... I don't know. I thought you used girl pronouns in that story, I guess I... I don't know, I heard wrong, maybe."

When there was nothing but tense silence, Steph's hand clenched tight around Nancy's, Jonathan did his best to offer up a comforting smile. "It's cool if you are. I won't tell anyone."

"I-" Steph started, the words catching in her throat. Two people knowing was a lot. A  _risk._ But Jonathan was a good friend, he was kind, he was supportive, even if he  _was_ awkward sometimes, he was an incredible person.

So she just nodded.

Jonathan nodded back, and then tilted his head.

"Stephanie," Steph answered his silent question with a crackling voice, feeling a rush of joy leap through her chest when Jonathan smiled at her and nodded.

"I like it."

He raised his camera and snapped a photo.

  

* * *

 

The next people to find out were Nancy's brother Mike and his Dungeons and Dragons group. And it was all Eleven's fault.

"Aw  _yeah_ , look at that twenty! Suck my  _ass_ , gelatinous cube!"

Lucas slammed his chest into Dustin's, letting out a hoot of celebration, and El held out a hand for a high five.

"Okay kids, would you settle down?" Mrs. Wheeler leaned half way through the door, tray of cookies in her hands, "Will, your mom just called, she wants you home in an hour.  _Not_ on your bike. Mike, is your sister still down there?"

Nancy sighed from her place on the couch, giving a thumbs up and yelling, "I'm here, mom!"

Steph poked out so she was in view of the woman, and waved. "Hi, Mrs. Wheeler!"

"Oh, Steve, I thought you went home," she laughed, "You mind giving Will a ride?"

"Not at all, Mrs. Wheeler!"

Nancy's mother smiled and winked, heading back into the kitchen muttering something that sounded like 'such a nice boy' to herself.

"Anyway," Nancy started, lifting the knitting needles back up, "You loop the yarn around the needle that you just stuck through the little hole thing, and you pull it out."

"Okay. In the bunny hole, around the bunny tree, out the bunny hole- fuck. Wait, it came apart, what the fuck," Steph stared angrily at the destroyed knitting as Nancy laughed. "Why are you laughing, this isn't funny! I'm ruined!"

"You just undid one stitch, you're  _fine_ , you're such a drama queen," Nancy said, rolling her eyes and fixing the stitch. "Try again."

"...some girl at school, he won't tell me if I know her or not."

The intense knitting had left them quiet, and the Dungeons and Dragons table had only gotten louder. Steph glanced up, distracted, just in time to hear Will saying,

"Literally  _no one_ knows a Stephanie at school!"

There was a clang as the knitting needles hit the floor.

All the kids looked over at Nancy and Steph, seeing both scrambling to try and pick up the ball of yarn before it rolled away across the uneven basement floor.

"Oh shit, man, ask  _them_!" Dustin whispered in a not-so-quiet voice, elbowing Will in the chest, "They go to the same part of the school!"

Will turned in his seat with a smile. "Do you guys know a Stephanie in the high school?"

"Why!?" Steph knew it came out too aggressive the second it was out of her mouth, and Will's surprised look only confirmed that. "Sorry. This knitting has me freaked out. Do we know a who?"

"Stephanie," Will repeated, "Jon has a crush on some girl at his school, but he only told me as a deal so I would go to bed, so he won't tell me anything else. Is there a Stephanie in the high school?"

Nancy and Steph shook their heads a little too quickly and a little too obviously, though the kids looked disappointed anyway. Apparently their lies were better than they thought they were.

"Stephanie."

Or not.

Eleven was pointing curiously at Steph, still-shaved head cocked to the side and a slight smile quirking at the edge of her lips. "Her.  _She's_ Stephanie."

Steph felt like she was about to black out. Getting outed to a Dungeons and Dragons group by a psychic fourteen year old wasn't exactly what she'd planned for tonight, but it was happening anyway. "I don't- that's- shit, I- Nancy?" she turned to her girlfriend for support.

"Don't know what you're talking about, El," she shrugged as casually as she could.

"Yeah, El, that's Steve,  _he's_ Nancy's  _boyfriend_ ," Lucas said, over annunciating the male words in the sentence to get his point across, "I mean- Steph and Steve are pretty close, I'll give you that, but if you're gonna try and be Professor X or anything, you're gonna have to work."

"No, _she,_ " Eleven pointed more aggressively this time.

"El, c'mon, stop messing around with them," Mike said gently, touching Eleven's arm with his hand. She kept pointing, this time looking at Steph like she couldn't  _believe_  she wasn't admitting to being a girl.

The stare ended up being more convincing than it looked at first glance, because all of a sudden Steph felt herself sighing and putting her hands up in surrender. "No, yeah, I am Stephanie. She's right."

She was only met with dead silence, until Dustin said, "Wait, dude, you're a girl?"

"I'm- yeah. Yeah, I'm a girl, I mean- you know, nobody  _thinks_ I'm a girl, 'cause I look like a guy, and- um. But I  _am_ a girl, and- um. Nancy and Jonathan are the only ones that know, other than you guys now, but um- it's not like- it's not a thing that people really... uh. Don't tell anyone else, I just- okay, this is... this is awkward, so- uh- can someone please say something?"

Mike shrugged. "Cool."

"Whatever, dude-" Dustin started, and then pursed his lips, "Dudette."

"Dude," Lucas said with an amused look at Dustin.

"What?"

"Isn't a dudette a hair on an elephant's ass?"

"So  _you're_ Stephanie!?" Will interrupted, eyes wide and excited, "Do you like Jonathan back?"

 

* * *

 

Joyce Byers somehow figured it out by herself. And then proceeded to make a confession of her own.

"Look, I'm not exactly what you would call..." she waved her cigarette around, shrugging, " _Straight,_ I'm- well, I've had my fair share of girls. That's- you know. I'm a... it's the L word, you know. Like a theater person."

"Lesbian?" Steph asked cautiously, and Joyce looked away, almost embarrassed. "That's... nice to know. I thought you and the chief slept together, though?"

Joyce looked shocked. "Hop!?  _Seriously!?_  No, no, god no, we're just friends, really. I mean- you know- if anyone _asks,_ of course we did, but- no. Really, no. He's made it- it  _abundantly_ clear that he doesn't want that type of relationship with me."

Steph nodded. "Oh."

Waving her cigarette around more, Joyce cracked a half-smile. "So you're- you're a girl and my son likes you, that's right? And you like him back, so you and Nancy and Jonathan, you're all..."

"Yes, we're all... uh. We're all dating, Mrs. Byers," Steph responded cautiously, and Joyce sat down on the ratty couch, patting the cushion next to her.

"Just Joyce. And you go by..."

"Stephanie. Or just... or just Steph. Either is fine. But you don't have to use that if you don't want to," she shrugged. Joyce blinked, leaning forward, and snuffed her cigarette out on the coffee table. "Sorry- I just- I'm not used to... to  _this._ To... you know,  _talking about this._ It's- it's weird. And- I get it if you're like... weirded out or anything, I don't even know how you found out, but- I'm sorry."

There was suddenly a cold hand on the side of her face. "Stephanie, honey, it's okay. I'm not weirded out, I- if I look confused, I'm just trying to process the fact that  _two_ girls like Jonathan. He's never exactly been the most...  _sociable_ type, you know? He's a good kid, but a lot of people don't understand that."

"Oh. Yeah."

Joyce patted her cheek and sat back, smiling. "I like the name, it suits you. If you need anything - anything at all - just drop by. Hell if I know none of Nancy's clothes will fit you. I might have some stuff in the back of my closet. Old stuff. Sixties."

  

* * *

 

"Pretty!" El grinned, eagerly gesturing to the floor length mirror she was standing in front of. One of her hands was clenched in Stephanie's, both of them wearing Mike's makeup jobs.

"Oh, wow, okay," Steph had to keep herself from laughing.  _It would hurt Mike's feelings,_ Nancy had told her beforehand,  _he really thinks he's good at this._ "Looks great, Mike, thanks!"

El cleared her throat and took a deep breath, "You look pretty."

There was a moment of silence, and then everyone grinned, Nancy and Mike giving little claps. "You're getting better at that!" Mike said, hugging her tight.

 _Full sentences,_ Nancy mouthed at Steph, chuckling.

"Dress?" El asked, one of her arms still wrapped around Mike's waist with the other pointing up at Steph. Then she pursed her lips, clearly biting the inside of her cheek. "Dress up. Can we dress up?"

"You can dress up if you want, yeah!" Mike smiled, but El shook her head a bit dejectedly. "O- oh, dress  _her_ up! Yeah! Totally!"

"Whoa, hey-" Nancy laughed, stepping between the kids and her girlfriend, "Why don't we ask if she  _wants_ to dress up first. Steph, you okay with that?"

Steph hesitated for a moment, and then shrugged. "Sure. I'll go for it. See if you can nail me a butch look, though, I'm not really into dresses."

El and Mike both looked ecstatic, practically jumping up and down before running off to their mother's closet to find clothes to dress her up in.

"They think you're great," Nancy curled her arms around Steph's waist, resting her head on her chest and smiling when she felt a hand fall on her shoulder.

"I think  _they're_ great. It's really... I don't know, it's nice to be able to hang out at your house and just... I don't have to..." Steph trailed off, head tilting to the side, "I don't know."

"No, I hear you," Nancy said, giving her waist a reassuring squeeze.

"I'm just Steph here. It's like-" she scratched behind her ear, a nervous tick of sorts, "You guys just... you just rolled with it, you know? Mike's friends are great too, but like- I don't know, I'm ' _the girl that used to be Steve_ ' to them. Like... I know they're thinking it, even though they don't say it. But you and Mike and El, you just-"

"Hey, don't cry, you're gonna ruin your makeup," Nancy reached up to wipe a couple of tears off her girlfriend's cheeks, standing on her tiptoes to press a gentle kiss onto her lips. "I'm glad we make you feel comfortable. I love you."

"I love you too, Nancy."

"Okay, I have the  _perfect_ outfit for you, no joke-" Mike was running out of his parents' room with El in tow, coming to a screeching halt in front of the two girls. "Come with me, c'mon, it's great. The jeans might be a little short for you, but you'll be fine, we can just cuff them, and..."

Mike dragged Steph away from his sister and continued rambling all the way until he'd closed the bedroom door and yelled at Nancy not to peek until they were done.

**Author's Note:**

> talk to me @frogyell on tumblr


End file.
